Floatation Spar for an Oil Containment Boom

ABSTRACT

A floatation spar for an oil containment boom having a vertically suspended oil containment curtain is provided. The floatation spar includes a buoyant body having an attachment surface and a retainer strip having a plurality of surface penetrating fasteners projecting from and spaced along an inwardly facing side of the retainer strip. The retainer strip is secured to the attachment surface with the containment curtain sandwiched between the retainer strip and the attachment surface by the fasteners penetrating through the attachment surface and into the body. The body is elongated and hollow at its lower end and includes apertures at the lower end into the interior thereof, the body is weighted at the lower end and includes a buoyant material at its upper end, wherein when the body is dropped onto a body of water, it will self-right and float in a generally vertical orientation.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to devices for containing an oil spill on a body of water and more particularly, relating to a floating vertical spar and an oil containment boom including the floating vertical spar.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Oil containment or oil exclusion booms are routinely used to prevent oil and other pollutants from spreading across a body of water. Oil containment booms include curtains or bands of a water-permeable, oil-impermeable material that are suspended vertically in the water by floating supports called spars. The spars are attached to the curtains at spaced intervals and serve to suspend and vertically support the curtain.

Several different prior art oil containment booms with floatation spars connected alongside the boom are disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,764,015; 3,921,407; 4,116,833; 4,333,726; 4,248,547; 5,102,262; and 5,267,813.

A problem with the above-identified and other existing oil containment booms is that the connection between the boom's curtain and floatation spars is specific to the particular curtain and floatation spar. That is, the floatation spar and curtain are specifically designed to cooperate with each other and one cannot be used without other. As such existing systems do not allow for versatility in the ability to attach curtains of different materials and/or layer curtains of different materials to the spars without fabricating a completely new boom having the desired materials and with a structure that cooperates with the specific spar.

Another problem with the above-identified and other existing oil containment booms is that the connection between the boom's curtain and floatation spars are at fixed intervals along the length of the curtain. As such, should a section of the boom's curtain require additional support, is it not possible to add additional spars at the location without modification of the curtain, which in most instances is not possible after the boom has been deployed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention provide a floatation spar for use in oil containment booms that include a vertically suspended oil containment curtain that has a new attachment with the curtain that permits easy replacement of a damaged spar and permits attachment at non-fixed spaced intervals to the curtain.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a floatation spar that has a construction that permits the spar to be stored and transported in a collapsed configuration and then expanded on deployment.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a floatation spar that is attachable to various curtain constructions and materials for various applications from silt control during shoreline construction to oil containment during tanker offloading and offshore drilling.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a floatation spar that is attached alongside the curtain rather than curtain sections end-to-end, thereby providing increased boom strength.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a floatation spar that may be attached at any location along the length of the curtain, thus if a section of curtain requires more support additional spars may be attached alongside another spar.

To achieve these and other advantages, in general, in one aspect, a floatation spar for an oil containment boom having a containment curtain is provided. The spar includes a buoyant body having an attachment surface and a retainer strip having a plurality of surface penetrating fasteners projecting from and spaced along an inwardly facing side of the retainer strip. The retainer strip is secured to the attachment surface with the containment curtain sandwiched between the retainer strip and the attachment surface by the fasteners penetrating through the attachment surface and into the body.

In general, in another aspect, the body is elongated and hollow at its lower end and includes apertures at the lower end into the interior thereof, the body is weighted at the lower end and includes a buoyant material at its upper end, wherein when the body is dropped onto a body of water, it will self-right and float in a generally vertical orientation.

In general, in another aspect, the body includes an upper body portion and a lower body portion that is connected to the upper body portion such that the lower body portion is moveable relative to the upper body portion. In embodiments, the lower body portion may be slidingly connected to the upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to the upper body portion between extended and retracted positions. In embodiments, the lower body portion may be hingedly connected to the upper body portion for rotation towards and away from the upper body portion between extended and retracted positions. In embodiments, the lower body portion is telescopically received by the upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to the upper body portion between extended and retracted positions. The lower body portion may include two or more telescopic members.

In general, in another one aspect, the spar includes a buoyant body having an attachment surface, a plurality of rivets projecting outwardly from and spaced along the attachment surface, and a retainer strip having a plurality of through holes cooperative with the plurality of rivets. The retainer strip is secured to the attachment surface with the containment curtain sandwiched between the retainer strip and the attachment surface with a rivet extending through each through hole in the retainer strip, the ends of the rivets being deformable to prevent withdrawal of the retainer strip.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated.

Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following drawings illustrate by way of example and are included to provide further understanding of the invention for the purpose of illustrative discussion of the embodiments of the invention. No attempt is made to show structural details of the embodiments in more detail than is necessary for a fundamental understanding of the invention, the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the invention may be embodied in practice. Identical reference numerals do not necessarily indicate an identical structure. Rather, the same reference numeral may be used to indicate a similar feature of a feature with similar functionality. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of a floatation spar constructed in accordance with the principles of an embodiment the present invention connected to a section of an oil containment curtain of an oil containment boom;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the spar and curtain section of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of a retainer strip in accordance with the principles of an embodiment the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, partial side view of the retainer strip of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 a is a perspective view of an alternative oil containment curtain attachment accordance with the principles of an embodiment the present invention;

FIG. 6 b is an enlarged, partial perspective view of the alternative attachment illustrated in FIG. 6 a attaching an oil containment curtain to a spar;

FIG. 7 a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a floatation spar constructed in accordance with the principles of an embodiment the present invention shown in an extended configuration;

FIG. 7 b is front elevation view of the alternative spar embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7 a shown in a retracted configuration;

FIG. 8 a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a floatation spar constructed in accordance with the principles of an embodiment the present invention shown in an extended configuration; and

FIG. 8 b is front elevation view of the alternative spar embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8 a shown in a retracted configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As a preliminary matter, it should be noted that in this document (including the claims) directional terms, such as “above”, “below”, “upper”, “lower”, etc., are used for convenience in referring to the accompanying drawings.

With reference now to FIGS. 1 through 5 of the drawings, a new spar embodying the principles and concepts of an embodiment of the present invention and generally designated by the reference number 10 will be described.

As best seen in FIGS. 1 through 3, spar 10 is connected to and vertically supports a section of an oil containment curtain 12. While only a section of the oil containment curtain 12 is illustrated, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily understand and appreciate that the oil containment curtain generally has a length ranging from several feet to several hundred feet, and may comprises several smaller length sections connected end-to-end or may be a single continuous length. It will also be understood, that in practice numerous spars 10 would be connected to the oil containment curtain 12 at spaced intervals along the length thereof as required in order to support the oil containment curtain.

Oil containment curtains are available in many forms and from various suppliers in the industry. Accordingly, the invention is not limited in application to any single type, brand or particular oil containment curtain. Generally, however, oil containment curtains are made of a material that permits the passage of water through the material while inhibiting the passage of oil through the material.

Returning to FIGS. 1 through 3, spar 10 generally includes an elongated body 14 having an upper end 16 and a lower end 18 between which the body extends. The upper end 16 includes a buoyant material 20. The remainder of the body 14, including the lower end 18, is hollow and includes apertures 22 into the interior of the body in order to permit water to enter and fill the hollow interior to displace air therefrom. A weight 24 is attached to the lower end 18, whereby when the body is dropped onto a body of water, it will self-right and float in a generally vertical orientation.

The oil containment curtain 12 is attached to the body 14 along a vertical attachment surface 26 and is retained to the body by a retainer strip 28. The attachment surface 26 is generally flat and longitudinally extends (vertically with reference to the drawings) along the upper end 14 of the body 12. The retainer strip 28 is similarly elongated to correspond with the attachment surface 26 and includes a plurality of penetrating fasteners 30 extending from an inwardly facing side 32 at spaced intervals along the length of the retainer strip, as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5. The oil containment curtain 12 is sandwiched between the attachment surface 26 and the retainer strip 28 with the penetrating fasteners 30 extending through the oil containment curtain 12 and through the attachment surface and into the body 14.

The penetrating fasteners 30 may be barbed or include other structure which prevents the fasteners from withdrawing from the body 14 once the fasteners are inserted into the body. Alternatively, the fasteners 30 and the body 14 may have other cooperating structures that permit the insertion of the fastener into the body and preventing withdrawal of the fastener once inserted.

In an embodiment, the upper end 34 of the retainer strip 28 may include a flange 36 that extends from the inward surface 32 and in the same direction of fasteners 30. The flange 36 is received by a slot formed through the attachment surface 26. The flange 36 may include an aperture 38 through which a fastener may be inserted to prevent withdrawal of the flange from the slot. Additionally, in an embodiment, the lower end 40 may include an L-shaped flange 42 that is received by a correspondingly shaped slot formed through the attachment surface 26. Once inserted into the body 12, flange 42 may serve to support and align the retainer strip 28 during attachment of the oil containment curtain 12 to the spar 10.

An alternative embodiment is illustrated in FIGS. 6 a and 6 b, wherein a plurality of rivets or nubs extend outwardly from attachment surface 26′ at spaced intervals therealong. Retainer strip 28′ includes a plurality of holes 46 at spaced intervals therealong that correspond with the rivets 44 such that one rivet is received by each hole. Rivets 44 are made of a deformable material such that once inserted through a corresponding hole 46, the end of the rivet is deformed to create a mushroom cap 48 to prevent withdrawal of the retainer strip 28′. The oil containment curtain 12 is sandwiched between the attachment surface 26′ and the retainer strip 28′ with the rivets 44 extending through the containment curtain and through the retainer strip 28′. The retainer strip 28′ is secured in place by deforming the end of each rivet 44 into a mushroom cap.

Returning to FIGS. 1 and 2, in embodiments, the body 14 may further include an upper body portion 50 and a lower body portion 52 that is connected to the upper body portion so as to permit relative displacement or movement of the body portions between retracted and extended positions. The spar 10 is more easily stored, transported and deployed in a retracted position wherein the over-all-length of the spar is decreased. Once deployed, the spar automatically extends into the extended, in-use position or configuration.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lower body portion 52 includes body members 54 and 56. Body member 56 is telescopically received by body member 54 through the bottom thereof which in turn is telescopically received by upper body portion 50 through the bottom thereof. In the retracted position, body member 56 is at least partially telescoped into body member 54 which is at least partially telescoped into the upper body portion 50. Body member 54 is restrained from separation from the upper body portion 50, and similarly body member 56 is restrained from separation from body member 54. Although, the lower body portion 52 is illustrated with two telescoping body members 54 and 56, the lower body portion could include less or more telescoping body members.

With reference to FIGS. 7 a and 7 b, there is illustrated a spar 10 having an alternative construction of body 14, wherein the same reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements from the previous described embodiments. In this embodiment, body 14 includes an upper body portion 58 and a lower body portion 60 that is pivotally connected to the upper body portion 58 by hinge 62 such that the body portions are free to rotate towards and away from each other between a retracted position (FIG. 7 b) where the body portions are arranged side-by-side and an extended position (FIG. 7 a) where the body portions are arranged end-to-end.

With reference to FIGS. 8 a and 8 b, there is illustrated a spar 10 having an alternative construction of body 14, wherein the same reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements from the previous described embodiments. In this embodiment, body 14 includes an upper body portion 64 and a lower body portion 66 that is slidingly connected to the upper body portion by a sliding coupling 68, such as, for example, a tongue and grove. Sliding coupling 68 permits body portions 64 and 66 to slide relative to one another between a retracted position (FIG. 8 b) where the body portions are arranged side-by-side and an extend position (FIG. 8 a) where the body portions are generally arranged end-to-end.

In embodiment, spar 10 may further include an illuminating light beacon 70 attached to the top of the spar to indicate the position of the spar in low light, and particularly at night so that is it visible from both vessels on the water and aircraft flying above the water. Alternatively or in addition, beacon 70 may include a GPS transceiver/transponder that operates to indicate its position in a global positioning system.

A number of embodiments of the present invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims. 

1. A spar for an oil containment boom having a containment curtain, the spar comprising: a vertically elongated and buoyant body, said body being extensible and having an upper body portion and a lower body portion movably connected to said upper body portion such that said lower body portion is movable relative to said upper body portion to extend and retract said body, said body having a flat attachment surface extending only along an exterior surface of said upper body portion; said lower body portion is hollow and includes apertures into the interior thereof and said lower body portion being weighted so that when said body is dropped onto a body of water said lower body portion moves relative to said upper body portion so that said body will self-right and float in a generally vertical orientation; a retainer strip having a plurality of surface penetrating fasteners projecting from and spaced along an inwardly facing side of said retainer strip; said retainer strip being securable to said attachment surface with the containment curtain sandwiched between said retainer strip and said attachment surface by said fasteners penetrating through said attachment surface and into said upper body portion.
 2. (canceled)
 3. (canceled)
 4. The spar of claim 1, wherein said lower body portion is slidingly connected to said upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 5. The spar of claim 1, wherein said lower body portion is hingedly connected to said upper body portion for rotation towards and away from said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 6. The spar of claim 1, wherein said lower body portion is telescopically received by said upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 7. The spar of claim 6, wherein said lower body portion includes two or more telescopic members.
 8. A spar for an oil containment boom having a containment curtain, the spar comprising: a vertically elongated and buoyant body, said body being extensible and having an upper body portion and a lower body portion movably connected to said upper body portion such that said lower body portion is movable relative to said upper body portion to extend and retract said body, said body having a flat attachment surface extending only along an exterior surface of said upper body portion; said lower body portion is hollow and includes apertures into the interior thereof and said lower body portion being weighted so that when said body is dropped onto a body of water said lower body portion moves relative to said upper body portion so that said body will self-right and float in a generally vertical orientation; a plurality of rivets projecting outwardly from and spaced along said attachment surface; a retainer strip having a plurality of through holes cooperative with said plurality of rivets; and said retainer strip being securable to said attachment surface with the containment curtain sandwiched between said retainer strip and said attachment surface with a rivet extending through each through hole in said retainer strip, the ends of said rivets being deformable to prevent withdrawal of said retainer strip.
 9. (canceled)
 10. (canceled)
 11. The spar of claim 8, wherein said lower body portion is slidingly connected to said upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 12. The spar of claim 8, wherein said lower body portion is hingedly connected to said upper body portion for rotation towards and away from said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 13. The spar of claim 8, wherein said lower body portion is telescopically received by said upper body portion for reciprocating movement relative to said upper body portion between extended and retracted positions.
 14. The spar of claim 13, wherein said lower body portion includes two or more telescopic members. 